Acodeco reports consumer complaints in Panama regarding advertising and real estate

Panama’s Consumer Protection and Defense of Competition Authority (Acodeco) has reported significant consumer complaint activity between January and July 2026, specifically regarding misleading advertising and real estate disputes.

In the realm of advertising, Acodeco opened 290 cases of misleading advertising. Of these, 213 are currently in process and 77 were initiated by the institution itself. To date, 14 cases have been resolved, resulting in sanctions totaling $11,398. The most frequent complaint involves non-truthful advertising, which accounted for $11,260 of the total fines.

Regarding the real estate sector, Acodeco received 247 complaints involving amounts exceeding B/. 10.6 million. Over half of these complaints (135 cases) concerned money refunds, totaling B/. 2,846,907. Other major issues included warranty breaches and hidden defects, which together account for nearly 80% of real estate complaints. Acodeco has successfully resolved 158 cases in favor of consumers, totaling approximately B/. 7.7 million.